Archive for the News Category

They say the camera never lies but on some occasions don’t you just wish it told a little ‘white one’? Really have a look for yourself and make your own mind up.

What was for sure of course was the amount of fun had at the Jolly Tots Antrim Fun Family Photo day … not quite ‘selfies’ but some stunning poses from the staff, children and parents who all had a great time dressing up and giving us their very best poses.

It was a day out with a difference when it was time for Children’s day out to Junction 1 JCB Park and play Park at Junction 1 Antrim.

The JCB Young Drivers Zone boasts over 50 ride-on JCB vehicles for 2 to 8 year olds with a specially designed track featuring bridges, humps, roundabouts and overtaking lanes. The 6000sq ft track has been designed by local company All Play and represented a £100k investment for Junction One.

Jolly Tots Antrim Manager,Helen Canning said there was much excitement when the children heard about the plans for their day out.
“JCB Young Drivers Zone is a great addition to Junction One. The track is extremely well designed and the layout means adults can relax with a coffee while their children whiz around on JCB vehicles or build sandcastles on the mini beach! Quite simply the children had a ball and are already looking forward to the next day out.”

Limited places in Jolly Tots and Jolly Kids: Do you need childcare? Well look no further than Jolly Tots Antrim. We have a number of sessions to suit your childcare needs. We offer a free induction period once a place has been given for your child to settle in and get used to their new surroundings and the staff that will be taking care of them. This is all based around times that suit you and your child’s routine.

Helen Canning, Manager at Jolly Tots Antrim commented: “Knowing your child is happy is the most important thing in the world for every parent. Even more so when your children are not in your care! At Jolly Tots we believe our name says it all – a place where children of all ages are more than happy to stay, play, learn and grow in confidence. Letting you get on with your daily routine with complete peace of mind.

Maybe that’s why so many parents, as their family grows, return to Jolly Tots time and time again. So if you have an immediate need for childcare give us a call

We had a great start off with wining Nursery of the Year award in the Antrim/Ballymena area.

We had days to the park, farm trips, teddy hospital, sports day, graduations day and too many birthday party to count. We had a Halloween party, a Wacky day and of course to finish of the year the big man himself turned up – a visit from Santa!

We would like to take this opportunity to thank our parents for all their support throughout the year and assure you it is very much appreciated.

We would also like to say a BIG THANK YOU to our wonderful dedicated staff team who bring so much joy and hard work every day to the jobs that they do.

So here’s wishing everyone a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous 2016 from everyone at Jolly Tots Antrim.

Jolly Tots Pre school children and staff where invited to join with Antrim Rotary Club, Members of Antrim/Newtownabbey council and the Mayor Thomas Hogg to help plant crocuses at the Antrim Forum.

This “Focus on the Crocus” Campaign was to raise awareness about the Polio vaccine that is still readily needed in some countries.

Over 5,000 purple crocuses were planted at Antrim Forum and Ballyearl Arts and Leisure Centre to raise awareness for Rotary International’s eradication of polio worldwide programme.

Mayor of Antrim and Newtownabbey, Councillor Thomas Hogg, was delighted to help with the bulb planting; “These purple crocuses signify the purple dyed finger of every child within the programme who is vaccinated against polio. I would like to thank Jolly Tots for their help to plant the crocuses and support this invaluable campaign.”

Heather Montgomery, President of Antrim Rotary Club said, “Our aim is to raise awareness and money for the eradication programme. For every £1 raised the Bill and Melina Gates Foundation will donate a further £2.”

Leonard Sproule, President of Newtownabbey Rotary Club said, “Since the programme was started in 1985, the disease has been reduced by 99% and remains endemic in just two countries – Afghanistan and Pakistan.”

All the children and staff of Jolly Tots thoroughly enjoyed the day and the children particularily enjoyed having some extra help from some of the little worms they found, which soon became their highlight of the morning !

Autumn is such a beautiful season with gorgeous colours of russet reds, burning oranges and berry hues. This time of year there is so much for the children to see and do and you can be sure they have endless fun in this most colourful of seasons.

The children have been very busy creating some wonderful Autumn displays, going out for walks in the nearby castle grounds collecting and looking at how all the leaves are falling and the colours that they are. They also enjoyed watching the many squirrels on little scavenging hunts, looking for nuts and berries to prepare for hibernation.

The children also had great fun preparing their pumpkins and making food for the birds, making and eating banana ghosts and mandarin pumpkins for Halloween. Watch this space for more Autumnal fun to come !

All day nurseries privately run and providing care for children from six weeks to five years must be registered and annually inspected by Social Services. With strict guidelines on staff/children ratios and ensuring that 50 per cent of staff must have a relevant childcare qualifications it is a very important time when it comes to the annual inspection.

So it was with eager anticipation that Jolly Babies recently had their annual Inspection from Social Services and passed with flying colours:

Maggie McGinley, Jolly Babies Manager at Jolly Tots Antrim was naturally delighted with the inspection report which included the following comments and can be seen for viewing at Jolly Tots Antrim upon request.

“The Inspector was impressed with the skill and sensitivity of all staff working with the children in their care and observed some rich, beautiful, interactions between the adults and the children.”
“Jolly Babies continues to provide high quality care in this urban setting: playrooms are well resourced with an extensive range of age appropriate play resources and equipment.”
“Staff work as a team both within their own playrooms and generally within the nursery and provide a rich, warm, stimulating environment for all the children in their care.”

“We were delighted with the inspection report and pleased that the inspectors were able to to see the interaction that means as our name suggests Jolly Tots or Jolly Babies is a place where children of all ages are more than happy to stay, play, learn and grow in confidence.

This ensures parents can get on with their daily routine with complete peace of mind. We believe that’s why so many parents, as their family grows, return to Jolly Tots time and time again.”

It was another success story for Jolly Tots Antrim as Danielle O Kane and Fiona Doak gained their certificate in Child Protection Officer Training. Child protection and safeguarding is a vital and potentially lifesaving duty of anyone who works with children. In completing the course and receiving their certificates Danielle and Fiona even more fully understand the responsibilities they have for any children under their care, and feel confident in carrying out the appropriate actions should any concerns arise.

Well done to both girls from everyone at Jolly Tots Antrim for the considerable effort they put in to achieve their certificates.

PS I know it’s not relevant to Danielle and Fiona’s awards but have a look at this lovely photo of the children of Pre Pre Room 2 in Jolly Babies enjoying messy play. So Cute !

It was a big ” Well Done ” recently to Danielle Reid from Jolly Tots Antrim who recently achieved her Pediatric First Aid certificate. This was through the childcare partnership training that offers information and support to childcare providers, parents and employers.

Helen Canning, Manager Jolly Tots commented: “We are delighted that another member of the Jolly Tots team has added to the knowledge bank that we are investing in here at Jolly Tots Antrim. Further prrof that we will alwys go the extra mile to ensure we have the best trained childcare support that you could wish for.”